Cryptology

From the Greek kryptos (hidden) and logos (science), "cryptology" literally means the science of secrets and it is intended to hide the information in a message. It has three purposes: to ensure confidentiality, to guarantee authenticity and to retain the integrity of the information. This science has been practised for thousands of years but has only been a discipline in itself for a few decades. It includes two main fields of study: cryptography and cryptanalysis.